He Caught A $100,000 Bass... Then On The Way To The Weigh-In, His Boat Engine Died

A boat is a key component for fishing—especially when $100,000 is on the line. So when Kyle Swerczek’s engine gave out with a 6.71-pound fish in the livewell, his chance to win the Spring Big Bass Bash nearly slipped away.

Swerczek is from the St. Louis area, but he’s grown up fishing at Lake of the Ozarks his entire life. His grandparents bought a lake house decades ago, where Swerczek, his dad Kevin, and his grandpa spent years fishing the Niangua Arm.

“The Lake has always been a special place to our family,” Swerczek said. “If you could give me a vacation to anywhere in the world, I’d pick the Lake every single time.”

In 2019, Swerczek’s dad bought a ’99 Ranger bass boat so they could start taking fishing more seriously.

And what better tournament for amateurs than the annual Big Bass Bash? Anglers from 33 states took to the water April 18-19, chasing the biggest bass of the weekend as severe storms ushered in the event.

The first day was slow, according to Swerczek. The storms muddied the water, winds were high, and bites were hard to come by as fish came out of hiding. The pair found little success on either the Niangua or Osage arms.

But that changed Sunday.

Swerczek believed conditions would stabilize after Saturday, so he and his dad returned to familiar water—the Niangua.

“The bites were pretty finicky… I could just see my line move a little bit and then I’d feel if there was any tension,” Swerczek said of the foggy morning. “It was the perfect conditions to fish extremely slow and pay attention to the subtlety of the bite.”

Success came in the first catch. Around 7 a.m., Swerczek reeled in a 3.81-pound bass from the shallows. “After I caught that one, I thought maybe a bigger female was around,” he said.

He was right.

Using a brush hog and working it slowly through shallow water, Swerczek set the hook again around 7:15 a.m.. Even in the muddy water, he could tell it was a solid fish by the fight.

Once in the boat and weighed, the Swerczeks decided to head to Red Oak Resort for an official weigh-in, unaware they had the tournament winner on board.

“We were taking our time getting there, and just before the Highway 5 bridge on the Niangua, we think we blew a cylinder out,” Swerczek recalled. “All of a sudden we felt the motor vibrating pretty bad and it kind of died.”

Stranded in the main channel, they spotted another tournament angler nearby—Jeff Humenik—who saw what happened.

“He came over and asked if we needed help,” Swerczek said. “I told him I had a pretty good fish in the livewell and was trying to get to Red Oak. He said, ‘Oh, hop in. I can give you a ride up there.’”

Swerczek jumped in, leaving his dad behind to guide their boat back to the house—about five miles away—using the trolling motor before later picking him up at the resort.

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“It was quite the rollercoaster. Everything was kind of a blur because it was pretty high stress—I was just trying to get that bass weighed in,” Swerczek said. “At the time, I never thought that bass was going to win the tournament.”

At Red Oak, the fish weighed in at 6.71 pounds—and held the top spot all day.

“I’m a realist, and I never let my emotions or hopes get too high because I don’t like being let down,” Swerczek said. “I was just expecting to hopefully place because I didn’t think that weight was going to hold up.”

With their boat out of commission, the Swerczeks returned to the lake house and watched the leaderboard. When it became official, the moment finally hit.

“My dad and I have put a lot of hours in on the water,” Swerczek said. “It felt nice to get validation that we are spending our time doing things that we enjoy—and to be rewarded for that.”

He split the $100,000 prize with his dad, with plans to invest in a new motor or upgrade their boat. Swerczek said the win wouldn't have been possible without support.

“I can’t give enough thanks to my family and the fishing community at Lake of the Ozarks,” he said. “I think the fishing community at Lake of the Ozarks is the best in the country… and Jeff is a prime example. He took time out of his fishing just to give me a ride.”

Humenik later attended the awards ceremony to cheer him on. “I think he was happier than I was,” Swerczek said with a laugh.

During the 2026 Spring Big Bass Bash, more than $350,000 was paid out, with second place going to Jarred Russell (6.63 pounds) for $20,000 and third to Kirk Fischer (6.59 pounds) for $10,000.

“I’d also like to recognize the Terrell family and all the volunteers who work and put on the Big Bass Bash,” he said. “They run the best tournaments in the country!”

The Big Bass Bash returns this fall for its 20th anniversary, set for Oct. 3-4—giving anglers another shot at landing the fish that changes everything.

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